Valve keeper retainer



Jan- 2, 1932, R E. DAWSON 1 40 704.

I VALVE KEEPER RETAINER I Filed Jan. 31, 1951 INVENTOR.

,Fayl". Dawson 5W raw ATTORNEYS;

Patented Jan. 12, 1932 UNITED. STATES RAY EUGENE DAWSON,

or" m nnanannmo, canrroanu vulva KEEPER newsman Application filed January 31, 1931. Serial No. 512,685.

This invention relates to valve mechanisms for internal combustion engines and more articularly to an improve type of valve eeper. The purposes and objects of the invention may be more readily understood by reference to the accompanying drawings wherein,

Fig. 1 is a side elevation of a valve stem and spring.

Fig. 2 is a side view of a portion of the valve stem with the valve cup and the split cone hereinafter described in assembled position. a

Fig. 3 is an end elevation of the structure of Figure 2. v a

Fig. 4 is a detail perspective view of-the split cone hereinafter described.

Fig. 5 is a sectional view upon Fig. 3.

Like numerals designate corresponding parts in all of the figures of the drawing. In the drawing, 5 designates'a valve, 6 the valve stem, and 7 the valve spring of an internal combustion engine, all of these parts being of a well known type.

It is acommon practice at the present time to provide a valve supportinglcup or cap 8,

having a tapering bore 9, w ich fits down over and locks together the two parts 10-10a of a split cone. These parts 10-10a are so formed upontheir inner faces as to fit a reduced portion 6a of the valve stem.

It is apparent that'as long as the cup or cap 8 is in place and is forced down upon the cone halves by action of the valve spring,

all of the parts will gether, and there will be no possibility of the parts of the split cone getting out of the 0 groove formedby the reduced portion 6a,

of the valve stem. v

However, a great deal of trouble and ex pense has been caused by the fact that the two conehalves have not, heretofore, been line 5-5 of provided with any means for preventing them from dropping out of the groove of the valve stem upon the lifting of the cap 8. The consequence has-been that in man instances these cone halves have dropped own into the crank case, requiring a waste of time and consequent expense to remove'them.v I

.tools to handle these small parts and be tightly locked tonot removed, they are likely to cause broken crank cases due to these becoming lodged between the engine base or crank case.

The possibility of these keepers into the crank case exists not only durm the time of the removal of the valve for grin mg or other purposes, but it exists during) the replacement of thekeepers in reassem ling the parts, and when the mechanic is placing these two separate pieces in the groove, while working in an extremely restricted space, the possibility of dropping one or both of the parts of the keeper is very considerable.

Many mechanics resort to the use of special even with these special tools, the task of putting them in place whileworking against the tension of the valve spring is a very tedious one. Therefore, the present invention aims to retain the advantages of the split cone keeper,

while at the same time avoiding the objection-' able features above recited.

To this end I make the cone halves 10-1002, of such length and of such proportions to the cap 8, that the cone halves project a ma terial distance below the lower edge of the cap 8, and to these exposed portions of the cone halves I secure a uniting spring 11, the terminal ends 12 of which flare outwardly, as indicated in Fig. 3. This spring is, in general, of U-shape and the intermediate portions of its legs are bowed, as indicated at 13, to fit in grooves 14: of the cone halves.

The sprin may be fixed to the cone halves in any suita le way, for instance, by pinching t e metal constituting the sides of the grooves 14, upon the spring wire of which the spring is formed.

The elongated bowed portion 11a, of the cone parts or keepers the cam shaft and dropping spring, serves the double function of providing .a springelement and of constituting a finger rasp by. which the two halves of the tapere cone maybe manipulated in placing them in position, and the flared ends 12 of the spring serves to center the keeper with respect to the valve stem, so that it-is only necessary to place the keeper againstvalve stem-with the valve stem lying between f the flared ends 12, and to thrust the keeper,

the"

constituted by the halves of the split cone, toward the valve stem, whereupon the halves will yield or open to permit their ready engagement in the reduced portion 6a of the valve stem.

While the particular arrangement I have shown is simple, economical and efficient, it is to be distinctly understood that the invention is intended to include within its purview any means for retaining the keeper sections in place after the lifting of the valve cup or cap, whether such means consist of the particular form of spring shown, or otherwise, because it is apparent that other ways will readily suggest themselves to those skilled in the art of yieldably holding the two keeper sections together for the purposes set forth. Consequently, it is to he understood that the invention includes within its scope whatever changes fairly come within either the terms or the spirit of the claims appended to the patent allowed hereon.

Having described my invention,'what I claim is:

1. In combination, a valve stem, a cap free- .ly slidable thereon and having a conical recess in its under side, a split hollow cone, a reduced portion upon the valve stem about which said cone is adapted to fit, the propertions of the parts being such that when the cap is seated upon the cone the lower portion of the cone projects below the cap, and a U-shaped spring afiixed to the two halves ef the cone about that portion of the cone which projects below the cap, the intermedi- Ellie portion of the spring being extended laterally beyond the side of the cone to form a grasp portion.

The combination with a valve stem, of h eeper comprising a split cone adapted to embrace and engage the valve stem, and a spring forming a uniting and carrying means fo the sections of said cone, said s rin bei v of elongated ti -shape with its egs ent a JLll'lCl and permanently afiixed to the sections of the split cone and with its intermediate portion ent to form a hand grasp portion of materially less width than the total width of the cone.

3. A structure as recited in claim 2 wherei in the terminal ends of the s ring project materially beyond the cone at t e side thereof remote from the hand grasp portion and are out-turned in opposite directions;

' In testimony whereof I afiix my signature,

RAY EUGENE DAWSON. 

